Flat weaving machine

ABSTRACT

The machine defines a weaving area and comprises machine controls disposed on at least one side of said weaving area. A substantially closed housing contains the controls. Suction conduit means receives air which is laden with particles and conveys it to trap chamber means connected to said suction conduit means and adapted to permit particles to settle from the air. Blower means are connected between the trap chamber means and the interior of said housing means. Filter means are connected between said trap chamber means and said blower means. Said blower means are operable to suck air through said suction conduit means, trap chamber means and filter means and to deliver compressed air into said housing means.

United States Patent 1 Filter et al.

14 1 Nov. 25, 1975 1 1 FLAT WEAVING MACHINE [75] Inventors: WaltherFilter, Langenhagen; Claus Filter, Rethem, Aller. both of Germany 122Filed: Nov.2l, 1974 [21] Appl. No: 525,724

Related 1.1.5. Application Data [63] Continuation-in-part of Ser. No.380.063. July 17.

1973. abandoned.

[58] Field of Search 139/1 R, l C, 12; 28/553; 19/107; 15/306 [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,400,792 5/1946 Turner 139/13.378.998 4/1968 Shackelford.... 139/1 3.451.435 6/1969 Rliia ct al.139/1 3.491.801 1/1970 Lippuncr 139/1 3,785,408 l/l974 Strauss 139/]Primary E.\'uminerHenry S. Jaudon Atlorney. Agent, or FirmKurt KelmanABSTRACT The machine defines a weaving area and comprises machinecontrols disposed on at least one side of said weaving area. Asubstantially closed housing contains the controls. Suction conduitmeans receives air which is laden with particles and conveys it to trapchamber means connected to said suction conduit means and adapted topermit particles to settle from the air. Blower means are connectedbetween the trap chamber means and the interior of said housing means.Filter means are connected between said trap chamber means and saidblower means. Said blower means are operable to suck air through saidsuction conduit means, trap chamber means and filter means and todeliver compressed air into said housing means.

9 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures U.S. Patent N0v.25, 1975 Sheet1of2 3,921,675

US. Patent Nov. 25, 1975 Sheet 2 of2 3,921,675

FLAT WEAVING MACHINE Y This is a continuation-in-part of our copendingapplication Ser. No. 380,063, filed July 17, 1973, now abandoned.

This invention relates to the type of flat weaving machine comprisingdriving and control means disposed on one or both sides of the weavingarea, and a blower which serves to suck off residual thread pieces whichhave been cut off and which is connected to a suction conduit.

The driving and control means disposed laterally of the weaving area aregenerally exposed so that they may become soiled by the dust, threadwaste, lint and the like, which is produced particularly during weavingoperations.

To protect the driving and control means, the particles which result insoiling have been removed from the place where they origninate, i.e.,adjacent to the shed and adjacent to the cutting means disposed at theedges of the woven fabric. Separate suction and delivery conduits havebeen provided for this purpose and have been connected to a suitableblower. These arrangements require additional conduits and have notgiven the desired success because the waste particles have not beencompletely removed.

It is an object of the invention to keep the driving and control meansas far as possible free of lint, dust and dirt, and also to supply airto parts which are subjected to a temperature rise during operation.

This object is accomplished according to the invention in that a commonhousing is provided for the driving and control means disposed on one oreach side of the machine, that the delivery conduit connected to theblower opens in each of these substantially closed housings at a pointwhich, if desired, is disposed adjacent to parts which are subjected toa temperature rise during operation, and that a filter is arrangedbetween a trap chamber in which residual thread pieces and the likewhich are sucked thereinto are separated. The housing is closed to alarge extent, except for the usual openings therein for permittinglaterally extending portions of the weaving machine, such as the breastbeam and shuttle race, to extend beyond the weaving area into thehousing and some air to escape or be exhausted therefrom. The housing isclosed off from the weaving area and the blower which is provided tosuck off residual thread pieces which have been cut off deliverscompressed air through its delivery conduit into the housing to providea superatmospheric pressure therein. This superatmospheric pressureprevents an ingress of dust and dirt through the housing openings orleaks which are inevitable. Incidentally, such passage openings can beavoided to a large extent or can easily be sealed if hydraulic drivemeans are used, e.g., to operate the heddles, and only passage openingsfor shafts or rods performing a straight-line movement are required inthe housing. It will be understood that the blower is preceded on itssuction side by a filter so that soiled compressed air cannot be blowninto the housing. In any case, the blower is not only utilized at itssuction side to suck off residual thread pieces and dust particles butis now used also to maintain the superatmospheric pressure in thehousing and may also be used to cool parts which are subjected to atemperature rise during operation.

It is known to provide a trap chamber for the separation of theparticles which have been sucked in and such chamber is required toavoid a clogging of the succeeding filters.

It will be particularly desirable to use hollow members as parts of themachine frame, e.g., as the breast beam and the shuttle race, so thatthese hollow members serve as suction or delivery conduits. In thiscase, separate conduits are not required and the frame member, dependingon its nature, may be used also for cooling or for suction. Forinstance, the breast beam may be used as a suction conduit and may beprovided with passage openings through which residual dust and filamentpieces are sucked out of the cloth. If the shuttle race is to be cooled,the compressed air flowing therethrough may be used for this purpose. Itis known to use hollow members as parts of the machine frame but onlyseparate suction and delivery conduits have been used so far so that theuse of the hollow members of the machine frame as suction and deliveryconduits in accordance with the invention affords additional advantages.

Particularly in weaving machines having a very large weaving width it ispossible, of course, to use a separate blower for each side of themachine. It will generally be sufficient, however, to provide a commonblower for both sides and to provide hollow machine frame members whichconnect the two sides and serve as connecting conduits.

A flat weaving machine is diagrammatically shown in the accompanyingdrawing wherein FIG. 1 is a front elevational view, partly in section,of a weaving machine according to the present invention and FIG. 2 is aperspective view thereof, portions of the wall of one of the housingchambers being broken away to expose the interior of the chamber.

In a flat weaving machine according to the invention as shown on thedrawing, the driving and control means are accommodated on each of thetwo sides of the housing in common, substantially closed housing 1 or 2.The housing 2 encloses not only the driving and control means but alsoblower 3, which serves to suck off residual thread portions, dustparticles, etc., through openings 4 in the hollow breast beam 5. Asuction conduit 6 leads from hollow breast beam 5 to trap chamber 7which is divided by partition wall 8 into two chambers. The sucked airladen with residual thread pieces, dust and the like is moved by blower3 through suction conduit 6 into trap chamber 7, in which residualthread pieces and dust particles can settle to the bottom and becollected. Trap chamber 7 is separated from blower 3 by filter 9 whichserves to clean the sucked air so as to protect blower 3.

The compressed air delivered by the blower is conducted in part throughan outlet 10 directly into housing 2, where it produces asuperatmospheric pressure, and in part through delivery conduit 11 whichis connected to the blower and leads into housing 1 on the oppositeside. In housing 1, electronic control elements are accommodated incabinets 12 and may be supplied with cooling air through deliveryconduit 11. When the compressed air has flown through cabinets 12, itflows into housing 1 to produce a superatmospheric pressure therein. Thesuperatmospheric pressure produced in housings l and 2 prevents aningress of dust and dirt particles into the housing through lateralopenings l4, 14 which permit portions of the weaving machine, such asdelivery conduit 11, to extend beyond the weaving area into thehousings. These openings also permit some air to escape or be exhaustedfrom the housings.

The shuttle race is subjected to a temperature rise in operation, and toenable a cooling of the race, when this is desired, discharge conduit 11may be formed by the hollow shuttle race itself.

The closed housings l and 2 result in a certain insulation of sound,which will be much improved if the housings are lined withsound-absorbing material 13.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that any suitable blowermay be used and that its capacity will depend solely on the size of themachine and the housing means 1 and 2. Those skilled in the art will soadjust the blower capacity that the blower will deliver into thesubstantially closed housing means a sufficient excess of air over anyair escaping therefrom through the openings therein to maintain apressure in the housing means which is sufficiently higher thanatmospheric to prevent lint and other foreign particulate matter fromentering the housing means, thus keeping the driving and control meansin the housing means clean. Clearly, a wide variety of blowers, andblower capacities will accomplish this result, depending on machinesizes and operating conditions readily to be determined by mechanics.Merely by way of example, a loom with a weaving area having a width of10 meters, with two lateral control housings having a volume of 8 m willoperate well according to this invention with a blower having athroughput of 2.4 m of air per minute. This will produce asuperatmospheric pressure of about 150 mm of H 0. Obviously, otherdimensions will require other blower throughputs and the amount ofsuperatmospheric pressure in the control housings may readily be setaccording to requirements, as long as the pressure is sufficient toprevent ingress of foreign particulate matter into the housing.

What is claimed is:

l. A flat weaving machine which defines a weaving area, comprising lsubstantially closed housing means laterally of the weaving area anddefining a housing chamber,

a the housing means having openings therein for permitting laterallyextending portions of the weaving machine to extend beyond the weavingarea into the housing means and some air to escape therefrom, and

b the housing means being closed off from the weaving area,

2 blower means having a suction inlet and a compressed air outlet,

3 suction conduit means having outlet means and inlet means forreceiving air laden with particles in the weaving area,

a the suction conduit means being in communication with the suctioninlet'of the blower means for drawing the air laden with particles,

4 trap chamber means connected to the suction conduit outlet means andpermitting the particles in the air drawn into the trap chamber means bythe blower means to settle,

5 filter means arranged between the trap chamber means and thecompressed air outlet of the blower means, and

6 the compressed air outlet of the blower means communicating with thehousing chamber and deliver-, ing thereto a sufficient excess of airover any air1 escaping therefrom to maintain a superatmospheric pressuretherein, the blower means sucking the air 5 laden with particles throughthe suction conduit means, the trap chamber means and the filter meansand delivering filtered compressed air free of the particles through theoutlet into the housing chamber.

2. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, further comprising a filteredcompressed air delivery conduit connected to the outlet of the blowermeans and a cooling chamber connected to the conduit for receiving the1filtered air as a cooling medium.

3. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, wherein the closed housing meanscomprises a first and a second housing each defining a housing chamberand disposed at opposite sides of the weaving area, the compressed airoutlet of the blower means having air delivery conduits delivering thefiltered compressed airfree of the particles to each of the housingchambers.

4. The flat weaving machine of claim 3, wherein the blower means is asingle blower mounted in one of the housing chambers.

5. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, further comprising a hollowweaving machine member mounted on the frame, the hollow weaving machinemember defining the suction conduit means receiving the air laden withparticles coming from the weaving machine memthe filtered compressed airfree of particles to one of the housing chambers.

8. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, wherein the at opposite sides ofthe weaving area, the blower means is a single blower mounted in thefirst housing chamber,

the trap chamber means is an enclosed chamber in the first housingchamber whereon the blower is mounted, the suction inlet of the blowerbeing in communication with the trap chamber means, and the compressedair outlet of the blower has a first delivery conduit communicating withthe first housing chamber and a second delivery conduit communicatingwith the second housing chamber for delivering the filter compressed airfree of the particles to each of the housing chambers and maintainingtherein a superatmospheric pressure.

9. The flat weaving machine of claim 8, further comprising coolingchamber in the second housing cham-, ber, the second delivery conduitbeing in communication with the cooling chamber and the cooling chamberbeing in communication with the second housing closed housing meanscomprises a first and a second housing each defining a housing chamberand disposed 1

1. A flat weaving machine which defines a weaving area, comprising 1substantially closed housing means laterally of the weaving area anddefining a housing chamber, a the housing means having openings thereinfor permitting laterally extending portions of the weaving machine toextend beyond the weaving area into the housing means and some air toescape therefrom, and b the housing means being closed off from theweaving area, 2 blower means having a suction inlet and a compressed airoutlet, 3 suction conduit means having outlet means and inlet means forreceiving air laden with particles in the weaving area, a the suctionconduit means being in communication with the suction inlet of theblower means for drawing the air laden with particles, 4 trap chambermeans connected to the suction conduit outlet means and permitting theparticles in the air drawn into the trap chamber means by the blowermeans to settle, 5 filter means arranged between the trap chamber meansand the compressed air outlet of the blower means, and 6 the compressedair outlet of the blower means communicating with the housing chamberand delivering thereto a sufficient excess of air over any air escapingtherefrom to maintain a superatmospheric pressure therein, the blowermeans sucking the air laden with particles through the suction conduitmeans, the trap chamber means and the filter means and deliveringfiltered compressed air free of the particles through the outlet intothe housing chamber.
 2. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, furthercomprising a filtered compressed air delivery conduit connected to theoutlet of the blower means and a cooling chamber connected to theconduiT for receiving the filtered air as a cooling medium.
 3. The flatweaving machine of claim 1, wherein the closed housing means comprises afirst and a second housing each defining a housing chamber and disposedat opposite sides of the weaving area, the compressed air outlet of theblower means having air delivery conduits delivering the filteredcompressed air free of the particles to each of the housing chambers. 4.The flat weaving machine of claim 3, wherein the blower means is asingle blower mounted in one of the housing chambers.
 5. The flatweaving machine of claim 1, further comprising a hollow weaving machinemember mounted on the frame, the hollow weaving machine member definingthe suction conduit means receiving the air laden with particles comingfrom the weaving machine member.
 6. The flat weaving machine of claim 5,wherein the hollow weaving machine member defines lateral openingsthrough which the air laden with particles passes into the suctionconduit means.
 7. The flat weaving machine of claim 1, furthercomprising a hollow shuttle race defining an air delivery conduit, andwherein the closed housing means comprises a first and a second housingeach defining a housing chamber and disposed at opposite sides of theshuttle race, the compressed air outlet of the blower meanscommunicating with the air delivery conduit to deliver the filteredcompressed air free of particles to one of the housing chambers.
 8. Theflat weaving machine of claim 1, wherein the closed housing meanscomprises a first and a second housing each defining a housing chamberand disposed at opposite sides of the weaving area, the blower means isa single blower mounted in the first housing chamber, the trap chambermeans is an enclosed chamber in the first housing chamber whereon theblower is mounted, the suction inlet of the blower being incommunication with the trap chamber means, and the compressed air outletof the blower has a first delivery conduit communicating with the firsthousing chamber and a second delivery conduit communicating with thesecond housing chamber for delivering the filter compressed air free ofthe particles to each of the housing chambers and maintaining therein asuperatmospheric pressure.
 9. The flat weaving machine of claim 8,further comprising cooling chamber in the second housing chamber, thesecond delivery conduit being in communication with the cooling chamberand the cooling chamber being in communication with the second housingchamber.